"Rhetoric, Materiality, and Politics explores the relationship between rhetoric's materiality and the social world in the late modern political context. Taking as their point of departure a reprint of Michael Calvin McGee's 1982 call to reconceptualize rhetoric as the palpable +experience; of sociality, the authors in this volume grapple anew with the role of communication practices in contemporary collective life. Drawing upon the work of Michel Foucault, Jacques Lacan, and Jacques Derrida, these twelve original essays supplement, extend, and challenge McGee's position, collectively advocating on behalf of a shift in theoretical and critical attention from rhetorical materialism to rhetoric's materiality." --Book Jacket.

Technically Together takes the reader on a thoughtful tour of the key writings on community and technology and the current debates that surround them to provide a clear understanding of the challenges new technologies present for theories of social interaction.

Global studies is a fresh and dynamic discipline area that promises to reinvigorate undergraduate and postgraduate education in the social sciences and humanities. In the Australian context, the interdisciplinary pedagogy that defines global studies is gaining wider acceptance as a coherent and necessary approach to the study of global change. Through the Global Studies Consortium (GSC), this new discipline is forming around an impressive body of international scholars who define their expertise in global terms. The GSC paves the way for the expansion of global studies programs internationally and for the development of teaching and research collaboration on a global scale. Mark Juergensmeyer and Helmut Anheier’s forthcoming Encyclopaedia of Global Studies with SAGE is evidence of this growing international collaboration, while the work of Professor Manfred Steger exemplifies the flourishing academic literature on globalization. RMIT University’s Global Cities Institute represents a substantial institutional investment in interdisciplinary research into the social and environmental implications of globalization in which it leads the way internationally. Given these developments, the time is right for a book series that draws together diverse scholarship in global studies. This Handbook allows for extended treatment of critical issues that are of major interest to researchers and students in this emerging field. The topics covered speak to an interdisciplinary approach to the study of global issues that reaches well beyond the confines of international relations and political science to encompass sociology, anthropology, history, media and cultural studies, economics and governance, environmental sustainability, international law and criminal justice. Specially commissioned chapters explore diverse subjects from a global vantage point and all deliberately cohere around core "global" concerns of narrative, praxis, space and place. This integrated approach sets the Handbook apart from its competitors and distinguishes Global Studies as the most equipped academic discipline with which to address the scope and pace of global change in the 21st century.

Recent years have seen amateur personal stories, focusing on «me», flourish on social networking sites and in digital storytelling workshops. The resulting digital stories could be called «mediatized stories». This book deals with these self-representational stories, aiming to understand the transformations in the age-old practice of storytelling that have become possible with the new, digital media. Its approach is interdisciplinary, exploring how the mediation or mediatization processes of digital storytelling can be grasped and offering a sociological perspective of media studies and a socio-cultural take of the educational sciences. Aesthetic and literary perspectives on narration as well as questioning from an informatics perspective are also included.

Examines the mesodomain of welfare reform through re-negotiating the order of economic inequality, provides a grounded fractal analysis into the medicalization of homelessness and the sociology of the self, and looks at the labeling of immigrant men as criminals. This title deals with issues of gender, ethnicity, illness and the urban situation.

Internet Research Annual offers a selection of the best work presented at the first three conferences of the Association of Internet Researchers, and provides a useful overview of the cutting-edge in Internet studies. Established scholars and new researchers address issues such as communities on/off line, the Internet as a methodological tool and space for research, and the places, politics, and policies of the Internet, creating a volume that comprehensively covers the field of Internet research. Also included are a brief history of the organization, a list of previously published papers from the conferences, and works by several of the keynote speakers including Phil Agre, Barbara Warnick, Bill Dutton, Sheizaf Rafaeli, Susan Herring, Robin Mansell, and much more.

This third volume of Information and Behavior shows broad continuities with previous volumes in this series, but it also represents an important evolution. In emphasizing theoretical advances in mediation, information, and communication processes, this volume has unifying themes at the cutting edge of communication research, linking communication with areas as far-ranging as cognitive psychology, intellectual history, social psychology, policy, and macroeconomics. A sampling of the contents indicates both continuities and discontinuities of communication research embodied in this volume. Contributions include Joseph Turow, "Mass Communication as Concept"; Gary Grumpert and Robert Cathcart, "A Theory of Mediation;" Leah Lievrouw and T. Andrew Finn, "Common Dimensions of Communication"; Joshua Meyrowitz, "Mediated and Unmediated Behavior"; Kathleen Reardon, "Teaching Children About AIDS"; Sari Thomas, "The Death of Intellectual History and the Birth of the Transient Past"; Sheizaf Rafaeli, "Interacting with Media." The second part of the work, emphasizing research and policy in specific information societies and regions, includes an opening essay by Everett M. Rogers, and follow-up studies by Judith K. Larsen on "Silicon Valley"; Quentin W. Lindsey on "The North Carolina Research Triangle"; Luis Fonseca, "High Technology in Brazil"; Ruyzo Ogasawara, "High Technology in Japan"; and Mitchell Moss, "Telecommunications and Financial Centers." The final two portions of the book cover social theory and cultural processes. They include articles by Jerry Salvaggio and Richard Nelson, "Models for Developing Telecommunications and Information Industries"; Everett M. Rogers and James Dearing, "University-Industry Technology Transfer"; Frederick Williams, "The Communications Revolution Revisited"; Rolf Wigand, "Recurring Questions about the Information Society"; Lee Thayer, "Tropes and Things"; Gordon L. Miller, "The Energy of Intelligence"; David Carr, "Thinking in Museums;" Benjamin J. Bates, "Information as an Economic Good"; Jorge Schement and Daniel Stout, "A Time-Line of Information Technology."

Communication research is evolving and changing in a world of online journals, open-access, and new ways of obtaining data and conducting experiments via the Internet. Although there are generic encyclopedias describing basic social science research methodologies in general, until now there has been no comprehensive A-to-Z reference work exploring methods specific to communication and media studies. Our entries, authored by key figures in the field, focus on special considerations when applied specifically to communication research, accompanied by engaging examples from the literature of communication, journalism, and media studies. Entries cover every step of the research process, from the creative development of research topics and questions to literature reviews, selection of best methods (whether quantitative, qualitative, or mixed) for analyzing research results and publishing research findings, whether in traditional media or via new media outlets. In addition to expected entries covering the basics of theories and methods traditionally used in communication research, other entries discuss important trends influencing the future of that research, including contemporary practical issues students will face in communication professions, the influences of globalization on research, use of new recording technologies in fieldwork, and the challenges and opportunities related to studying online multi-media environments. Email, texting, cellphone video, and blogging are shown not only as topics of research but also as means of collecting and analyzing data. Still other entries delve into considerations of accountability, copyright, confidentiality, data ownership and security, privacy, and other aspects of conducting an ethical research program. Features: 652 signed entries are contained in an authoritative work spanning four volumes available in choice of electronic or print formats. Although organized A-to-Z, front matter includes a Reader’s Guide grouping entries thematically to help students interested in a specific aspect of communication research to more easily locate directly related entries. Back matter includes a Chronology of the development of the field of communication research; a Resource Guide to classic books, journals, and associations; a Glossary introducing the terminology of the field; and a detailed Index. Entries conclude with References/Further Readings and Cross-References to related entries to guide students further in their research journeys. The Index, Reader’s Guide themes, and Cross-References combine to provide robust search-and-browse in the e-version.

This volume provides new approaches to the concept of media logics – developed by Altheide and Snow – by drawing on theoretical and empirical perspectives from international scientists working in the field of communications, media, political science, and sociology. In an increasingly digitized and globalized world, powerful media structures and technologies influence our daily lives in many respects. It is not only mass media but ‘poly media channels’ that become more and more contextualized in everyday lives. Therefore, it is necessary to revisit the theory of media logics, which focuses on the strong intercorrelation of media technologies, media institutions and media power. Media Logic(s) Revisited attends to this by critically reflecting on the idea of media logic, a much needed input in light of current developments and strong cultural embedding of media in various social contexts.

The Culture of Efficiency: Technology in Everyday Life reveals how people are managing, exploiting, and resisting technological developments in the digital age. In this unique volume, distinguished experts from a broad range of fields candidly show how the latest technologies are being used to transform and control nitty-gritty aspects of life from conception onward and the surprising benefits and consequences. Bold and provocative, The Culture of Efficiency is for everyone concerned with efficiency and effectiveness. It offers fresh insights about social trends, practical suggestions for improving everyday life, and vital forecasts about the future of work and leisure. This is essential reading for researchers, professionals, and students in communication, sociology, education, anthropology, psychology, organizational science, operations management, marketing, gender studies, environmental studies, American studies, healthcare, and social policy. Overall, the volume offers a rich interpretation of the meaning of living in a culture of efficiency.